


Flight Plan

by zerozerokyu



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Airships, Alternate Universe - Steampunk, Blood and Gore, Hannibal was not proud of his past, Inventor! Will, M/M, Murder, Ship captain! Hannibal, Will love ham
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-21
Updated: 2020-07-21
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:48:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,655
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25426405
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zerozerokyu/pseuds/zerozerokyu
Summary: The Meltdown has thrown the world into a mess. The Church rules the people in wall cities and only those with little sin could live at the top layers of the cities. Money can buy you a spot for forgiveness and people are willing to sell each other out just to survive. The Church is against anyone who speaks up about them.Will has lived his life comfortably on the ground, abiding by and upholding society’s laws. But when he receives a mysterious letter from an old friend he abandons the world he’s known and charters an airship from the mildly eccentric Captain Lecter to take to the skies.Hannibal is just a simple airship captain who flies around dropping goods requested in his smuggling business. Life is good, he gets paid and the adventure keeps him happy until he decided to pick up a human cargo as the person sounds desperate.
Relationships: Will Graham & Abigail Hobbs, Will Graham & Hannibal Lecter, Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter
Kudos: 6
Collections: Hannigram_Reverse_Bang_2020





	Flight Plan

**Author's Note:**

  * For [kishafisha](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kishafisha/gifts).



> Hello Hello I am back with my first ever Hannibal fic and wish me the best of luck as I try to untangle my very messy thoughts while writing this fic. 
> 
> I would like to thank kishafisha with the wonderful art and sitting down with me as I discuss fic. Man my thoughts are messy.  
> And big thank you to my beta who is probably going to roll eyes at me for my mistakes and sentences that makes no sense. 
> 
> This fic is written for Hannibal RBB for kishafisha's art! Follow kishafish for [Ao3](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kishafisha/pseuds/kishafisha) as this art is a beauty!! Holy mouldy cheese when I first saw the art I had so many ideas of what I wanna write and got. Thank you so much for your lovely art prompt, darling, this was a pleasure to write and you were awesome to work with!
> 
> Thank you and hope you enjoy my first attempt at this fandom.
> 
> Do follow me on tumbler at [ZeroZeroKyu](https://gloomymegu.tumblr.com/) and feel free to drop me some prompts and ideas to write!

Life in the middle layer of a walled city was not what Will had expected.

Honestly speaking he could not really decide what he was supposed to expect of the world that has gone to shit after the catastrophe labelled as  _ The Meltdown _ occurred ages before he was born. The world he is born into now is normal to him. As normal as one could expect from living in a theocratic rule in a wasteland within the walled city of Nu-Roma he calls home. 

While everyone was running around like a headless chicken to survive, the church rose to power to seize control of the lost with promises of keeping those who followed them to safety just like Moses before the great flood. Wall cities were built to contain all the people away from the wasteland outside and those who are unfortunate to not be in the wall cities usually die from exposure as told to him by his parents. The condition for safety was giving yourself up to the religion and the new system. When people get desperate, they are willing to do anything to survive. 

‘Outside bad. Inside good.’ as what his family will tell him since young when he asked about the unfair laws The Church seems to pass. Laws regarding who should be saved. Rules about how the place is to be run. Laws passed that caused people who are deemed disloyal to be dragged away and ‘reformed’. Those laws kept everyone in line and obeyed the Church with fear of not having a place within the city. No one ever dreamed about leaving the safety of the cities and dreamed about escape. 

Will had spent plenty of time when he was younger lying on the roof of his home during cloudless nights staring up at the open sky wondering what was beyond the walls and dreamed about touching the sky and the stars that are considered forbidden to all as flying was considered a heresy, an act that goes against God's will for humans.

As Will grew older he still wonders what he was expecting, a question that never seems to be answered. Maybe he expected the world now to be a little better? Free? Or maybe he just always wondered what the world was like before  _ The Meltdown, _ curious to know if what he is living through now is better than what was before _. _ All he knew about the time before were bits and pieces he found from banned books which contradicts what was told by the Church. The Church paints a much grim picture of the time before  _ The Meltdown _ but those books painted him a dream of freedom in the sky.

What he does know is that he didn’t expect to have to be on his knees every Sunday begging for forgiveness from a God he does not believe. A God that is not as forgiving as what the Church portrays the all mighty to be with a need to ask for a contribution to exorbitant alms just to keep his home in the polluted middle cylinder area of  _ Limbus  _ without dropping to _ Inferna  _ where there is only junk and those unfortunate to land up there is as good as dead with no way of living long before the conditions there kills them. 

The area he grew up in all his life made him feel like he is living in limbo just like the name with no ability to go up and doing all he could not fall to the lowest where there is no way to claw your way back to the Church’s grace. 

****

The choking miasma of burning incense in the room is making him nauseous. The giggles and writhing of the lady when he held her leg to hold the knee in place is getting on his nerves. Her need to ask him every few seconds to hurry up in his adjustments and whining about the cold is sending him to the edge. 

Will’s head pounded like the drum of a Roman galley adding to the list of things occurring around him that is not helping his mood. He is usually in a great mood when he presents his creations but just not today. 

Will slowly breaths out and willed his body not to gag at the assault of the sickly sweet smell of roses on his senses. He needs to not get snappy for the money. He lets the breath out slowly and goes back to gingerly screwing in the porcelain plate of the shin covering the gears of the prosthetic leg and sighs when it slots in seamlessly as he has designed it to be. He ran his hand over it to check for smoothness and the leg looks like it was made of one piece of curved ivory; pale, beautiful and painted to perfection. 

“Madam Wazelton, we are done. Why don’t you give it a test for comfort? Go on, I’m here for more adjustment if anything goes wrong.” Will got off from the floor, putting his tools back into the box while releasing the magnifying glasses from his eyes.

The lady stood and took a few test steps towards the full-length mirror. She pulled her gown up to look at the new leg. She tentatively stretched and extended her leg after Will nodded at her, watching the toes curl and her ankle move to follow the movement just like it was made out of flesh and bones. Her smile grew with each ballet pose she does, the feet moving and bending.

Will decided it is the right time to bring the husband in to see his work as the madam of the house test out her new mobility. 

“Beautiful. Just stunning how it looks on her.” Came the voice of the husband like he could not believe what he was seeing stepping closer to examine the leg, reaching tentatively with his fingers to trace the shape of the prosthetic. “ _C'est magnifique_ ,  _ Monsieur Krahe _ . Indeed your reputation is well deserved. The beautiful lacquer finish on the toes, the gilded engravings along the ankle and the spring to keep the weight balanced. It was truly worth the wait to witness such a masterpiece . Anyone who is able-bodied will envy my Angelica for having this.”

Will smiled behind the mask and did a little bow. “I’m glad to be of service to you and the madam. Now we’ve done the final fitting, at last, this should last you, Madam, the next few decades. Unless of course, you want an upgrade or a few more different designs and purposes. I’m sure I can come up with more for the right price and some ham leg. You know how to contact me, I presume.”

The amount of money they handed him was much more than agreed upon. He is not going to say no to more money and it quickly vanished away into his coat. Money might excite him but the idea of getting away from here soon to get more provisions to bring home to Winston excites Will even more.

“I beg your pardons but now if you will excuse me, I have another appointment to meet. A pleasure to be of service.” he pulls on his coat and carries the toolbox on his back. He said his thanks to the maid who handed him his cane. The maid curiously stared at his face with the same look of wonder people had of his face cover.

“Walk with me. I need to get used to this leg before you leave.” she extended her hand towards him, her perfectly round black pearl ring glimmering in the light. 

“A beautiful pearl ring I must say, my Lady.” he complimented the ring which earned him a peal of soft laughter. 

The walk to the front of the door was silent with only the soft click of the cane on the marble floor until she broke it with a light squeeze to his hand to get his attention back from his eyes wandering over the curved marble statue.

“Why do you wear this plague doctor’s mask all the time? I have never seen you without it. You do know the ladies here are all wondering what you are hiding beneath that macabre mask of yours. Is it an attractive face under that at which you are trying to keep away from us?” her voice was full of curiosity.

Will chuckles in amusement at the statement, never expect a lad of an upper-class to be this bold and forward as she is. A rare out of the ordinary trait coming from a young lady from a prominent family. A behaviour hinting that she might not have been born into upper-class social circles or maybe she is just an interesting lady.

People who he has worked for in the upper-class circles have never shown much interest in him other than what he can make for them. All they want for him to do is present his works to them and be gone from their sights once the exchange. They are cold and distant even if they had done business with him countless times and invited him to social gatherings or parties.

“My face is damaged, my lady. I don’t think it is right for me to scare those who meet me with it and take attention away from my creations. Ain’t I just the creator who is here to build what was asked of and give you the best work of art?”

“I’m sure you don’t look too bad under that thing. Try me, I have seen worst.” Her voice is challenging.

“Believe me Madam Wazelton, if anyone was to see this face in  _ Città del Perdono  _ where God is so near, the all-mighty might smite me from looking like one of the spawns that crawled out of hell. And also the other reason I need the mask is to breathe. You won't want to see me wheezing away like a dying man.” Will is glad to see the horseless carriage pulling up, wanting to end this conversation before she pries more into his life. 

“Call me Angelica. I hated always being called Madam Wazelton, sounds very stiff like I’m an old lady.” 

“My apologies. Angelica. Have a good day.” Will corrected easily. 

‘Anything for the customer.’ he thought, reminding himself who is paying his bills.

He quickly climbed onto the carriage that takes him to the station, away from the glimmering mansions and huge churches in _Città del Perdono._ Away from the Church that is always spying on their people. He loves doing his work and selling his creations to the rich but Will still prefers to tinker in his workshop. He does not enjoy being sociable and trying to be nice to people for the sake of money is not something he is great at but somehow managed to do so. 

All he wants to do now is to remove his mask and disappear among the unchecked crowd that leaves  _ Città del Perdono  _ down to  _ Mitte Limbus  _ and enjoy some ham with his furry housemate. 

****

Will wakes with a start, bolting upright in his bed, eyes flung so wide each iris is a perfect orb of pale blues. His body drenched in sweat and huffing hard to catch his breath. His lungs burn from the lack of air like a man who is drowning. He choked back tears threatening to fall. Everything felt so real. He huffs and sighs out in relief when his brain focuses back to the present. It was all a dream but it felt like it had just occurred not too long ago. He could feel his panic rising as he thought back to that day. The soft nudge to his face along with the excessive licking pulled him out of his thoughts. Will laugh as he tries to stop Winston from coating his entire face with more wetness.

“Okay, okay, I’m awake Winston. Yes, yes, no more licking or I’m gonna smell like I slept in the dog house.” Will chuckles as he greets his very happy companion. 

Winston barked and ran toward the direction of the kitchen before tapping both front paws on the side of his empty food bowl. Will took that as a greeting and went to the bathroom for a much-needed shower after the night sweat. He reeks and does not appreciate how dishevelled he looks with the stubbles. The hot shower doing wonders to his aching body and his mood very much lightened once he was done shaving, the nightmare was long forgotten once he got dressed for the day of meeting his very rich and well-paying clients. The people who can buy items at the drop of a hat and not even blink an eye when he quotes them exorbitant prices just for the fun of it. But he is lucky enough to have the option to choose who gets to buy his creations now that he made somewhat of a name for himself. 

The kettle started whistling once he entered the kitchen. Winston patiently waited for the gears to turn and barked when it finally dispense his daily meal after much sputtering and squeaks. Will took a note to fix the feeder as he watched the grinder start turning, grinding up the coffee beans with the steam that powered its movement and before long the bing alerts him to his morning coffee being ready as it drips into his cup. Will sips it with a sigh, the coffee waking him up. The house started to rumble and shook. Will held on to the nearest surface as he waited out for the tumours to end. His biggest regret is getting a home that is so near to the edge that if it shakes any more than now, his house might just be in the risk of breaking off from the edge and falling into the landfill below.

“Hates it when the  _ above _ run their machines to chuck out their perfectly recyclable items just because they could. Resources are rare here you wasteful twats!” Will yelled, shaking the fist at no one in particular as he dusts off the debris that fell on his body from the shakes. 

Will stood by the window, intently staring at his cup of coffee that is now sprinkled with dust. Sunlight filtering through it and falling over his sleeves. His coffee now ruined, he decided to just toss it out of the window off to the abyss and peered over the window wondering if he would hear a scream echoing back at him for the hot liquid. He walks off to the other window to see if he can spot some sky under the smoky haze that covers the middle town. 

‘Oh no, not now!’ He nearly gasped and quickly turned away from his window before his neighbour decided to be too friendly with him. He does not want Mrs Robins to try setting him up with her girls again. Last time it happened, things got awkward.

The downside of living in close proximity with the rest of the neighbourhood is the absolutely horrendous inability of any resident to have even a modicum of privacy. People get nosy around here always wanting to know more about you. Too friendly. Probably trying to get dirt on you to report to the Church if needed.

The clock chimes and Will groans when he sees the time. 10 am. He is about to be very late in his delivery and it takes about two perfectly frustrating hours of checks if he is unlucky just for him as a Middle Grounder to get clearance to travel up to _Città del Perdono_ but he has clearance papers from the families that hire him and the seal of the Church speeding his trip up significantly. If he is lucky he can pass through in a few minutes with no trouble. It is really depending on how much of an ass the _Scalaria_ station masters want to be to him on that day. But he is glad it was just for half an hour on a bad day compared to the rest who have to go through the long process to above even with the work papers in order and also get groped by the Seraphs to ride the commercial tube. He sees no point at times going through the trouble of travelling across layers no matter how well they pay him to own a piece of his ‘art’ pieces he made in his workshop but he has to if he wants to keep his little house and Winston alive if they want to remain undisturbed. Going up to _Città del Perdono_ to deliver the orders made to him might be the best way to earn the money and keep himself somewhat on the good side of the Church even if he has to masquerade as an obedient servant to the Church both ways. 

Will hates to think what they might do to him if he ever disobeys them, the last person who forgot to make his monthly contribution to the church or forgot to make his church mandated weekly confession was dragged away by the  Seraphs and thrown off to the lowest of the cities . Will assumed the guy did not survive the fall or maybe he did, no one really knows what happens when you reach the lowest level of the walled city. 

He is glad that he goes by an alias and always has his face covered, no one could really identify him and the Church can’t ask him for more donations when they have no knowledge of his extra earnings. Will have taken great care to ensure he will never be found out about for his 'side' business. But there is still a risk to doing this especially when people get nosy or one day Winston can magically speak and betray him. 

When he is out of his mask, he is just Will the odd tinker who keeps to himself in the gloomy house by the wall fixing anything as long as you pay him well and collects junk to make things to fill his house. He is labelled as harmless by plenty. Even the Seraphs barely spare a second glance at him when he walks past, carrying the head of a marble statue.

“Winston. Hey, come here boy, we gotta get ready soon.” Will whistle to his dog as he walks to his workroom to make a final check on the goods to be delivered. Will smiles as he looks at his masterpiece that took him weeks to carve and delicately put together. Winston noses him at his thigh. 

“What do you think, Winston? Do you think maybe I might get paid more for the excellent craftsmanship?” Will chuckled and secured the rectangular box into a secret compartment of his tool chest and locked it with a key around his neck. He picks up his cane and nods in the assurance that all is in order for him to leave.

“Shall we go now, boy? Think that we might be able to sneak a few bonbons later when the master of the house is not watching or maybe even get a whole duck if the house is being generous?”

Winston just barked happily in response, always the cheerful one between them, wiggling his body as Will adjusted his backpack on his body. Winston stops in front of the hanging ham leg and bark, refusing to move until they have completed their ritual for their usual trip. 

“One for the road than you smart dog.” Will chuckles and carved off a few slices from the cured ham leg hanging by his door, stuffing one into his mouth and giving one to Winston as a treat.

The ham melted in his mouth with the taste of fatty meat coating his tongue with a rich nutty flavour of acorn-fed boar. Will chewed slowly, enjoying the taste. It is hard for anyone who does not live in  _ Città del Perdono  _ to acquire delicious ham that does not taste like it was made out of scraps of expiring pork with other fillings, let alone the whole ham leg of Iberico he has now. Food is never scarce to the upper-class people while those who live in the middle are just grateful to have any type of food as long as it fills their stomach.

“Life is unfair to us middle dwelling people don’t you think Winston?” Will lamented to Winston who responded with a bark. “Glad you agree too.” 

With a few last checks they stepped out, the door to his apartment clicked shut as the gear rotated to bolt it shut with a final turn of the key. They made a dart for one of the darker street corners, Will keeping his eyes peeled to make sure no one decided to follow them. The Church always has spies all over the place and people who will snitch out their neighbours just to earn a few extra coins or get an upgrade on their living conditions if the ‘help’ was significant. The world has gone to shit ever since the Church took over after the Meltdown that wiped out nearly half the world population with famine, unlivable conditions and messed up the climate. Most of the globe turning into a wasteland with only limited areas for the wall cities to be made. For survival, people learn real fast that money will give you a better life in the city and you can be pardoned from nearly any sin as long as you pay the right person in the Church to make it go away. The next thing you learn is that they should fear the Church and follow the commandments for it is the words from God to humanity to repent for causing the  _ Meltdown _ . 

Will learned to keep his head down even if he has to pretend to behave like one of those loyal sheep who will one day be sent to be slaughtered by the Church if he doesn't want trouble.

‘Keep your head down, turn away when the Church drags anyone away and comply with the rules of the Church and  _ Seraph _ even if you hate it.’ Will repeats to himself countless times which now turn into a mantra for him. There is no point trying to get into unnecessary trouble after what his family has pulled ages ago since they paid with their lives for their indiscretion as of what he managed to find out later in his life. 

Will held on to his belongings, zig-zag through the market and different alleyways towards the main  _ Scalaria  _ Station to make sure no one was tailing him. Will kept his strides even enough for Winston to match him, his loyal companion keeping up with him with no issue from following him for trips like this often. Will made sideward glances and ducked into a dark tunnel and pulled on his mask, letting it click on and took a breath as the machine filtered the musty air and fastened his cloak before emerging from the other end to enter the  _ Scalaria _ tube Station. The last item to go on is his gloves. He is now ready to travel up and conduct his business. The cane in his hand clicked as he took confident strides.

The station is empty. Will is glad of that, lesser people means less chance of him having to interact about his appearances or be questioned on where he goes. The last thing he wants is for a kid to ask why a scary-looking plague doctor is taking the tube or be questioned by one of the employees of the station. But there are still some people speaking of him in hush tone about the plague doctor making his trip again to  _ Città del Perdono _ . 

Will ignored them easily as he continued looking at the schedules for the private tube. Seems like his luck was not great for the day. The fast-approaching footstep as he searches for his token for the tube tells him that things are not going to go well. The tap on his shoulder indicates that he is right and his day is about to get a lot worse from this encounter.

“Papers. State the location, the nature of your visit and the length of time?” Came the voice of a very bored looking  _ Scalaria  _ employee flanked by two Seraphs who are probably wondering what this weird mask man is doing here and if they are allowed to roughen him up just for looking different. Will did a quick once over at all the people present. The station employee looks new from how pristine his uniform. The other two Seraphs loom over him. They look like two overgrown apes with their stubby necks and their muscled hands on their batons with electric prongs. Will has torn apart enough of this baton to know how it works and built a smaller version which nearly blew his fingers off. Nasty stuff.

“Give me a moment all of you gentlemen as I try to find that letter.” Will held a gloved hand out to show that he was complying and there is no need to get hostile as he rummaged through his pockets. Winston barked when he touched the right pock and trod off to some children at the side. 

Will finally finds the item and plucks out a silver token from one of his pockets and passes it over along with the letter addressed to him for his services. The employee peeled the letter out of the envelope and read through it, he peered from behind the letter looking at him dead in the eye like he was trying to read his expression behind the mask. Will suddenly felt the mask constricting as he breathed despite it being well designed enough to be worn in the most polluted areas as the machine filters out the particles. 

Will raised an eyebrow as the man with the name tag of Mathew, held the token up to the light like he was checking for a forgery, turning and looking at it in all directions. The man passed it to one of the goons at his side to check it. 

“It is real ain’t it?”

“Very much so. Send a telegram to the Mournphale family if, in doubt, I’m sure they will be ecstatic to hear from you why their papers are in doubt of authenticity. Lord Thesus is a man who doesn't like being questioned if you know what I mean.” Will tries to sound as bored as he could. He clicked his tongue for Winston to come back from having his belly rubbed by a bunch of children. Will pulled out his pocket watch from his wait coat and looked at it for the lack of doing anything. 

“It looks like a really good forgery. We better check it again.” The Seraph meat bag added in just to feel like he is in the conversation. 

“Well hurry up Mathew, have it checked. Time waits for no man and I don’t want to answer the reason for my lateness. Won’t be nice to have to report you for holding me up for the tube for not knowing how to do your job properly.” He snaps the watch shut and slips it back into his pocket. He could feel a yawn threatening to appear. He is getting bored of waiting. Usually, he won’t fuss this much but today he is just not in the mood to be standing around and being gawked at for his attire or be questioned. He always prides himself for following the rules and never doing any wrong.

The gears grinds and hisses as steam fill the room with the indication that another of the tubes has left the station towards  _ Città del Perdono.  _ The horn of the speaker in  _ Scalaria  _ transmitting the church’s weekly announcement regarding updates of the news in the town and reminding the people to repent for the sin past committed for the world to heal this coming week at the mandatory confession stations around the different levels of the cities. 

“Take that mask off and put that box down there to be checked.” Mathew’s scratchy voice intercepted his thoughts. 

“No.”

“What did you say, bird face?” The meat bag steps forward challengingly. 

“I said no. I won’t take it off or be handing you the box to be checked. It contains precious cargo that is too delicate to be prodded around by untrained hands. In fact, I don’t know why I’m being troubled. The document clearly states that I should be allowed to pass through with no disturbance by anyone working for The Church which includes all of you.” Will pressed a gloved finger at the signature and the seal of the church that issued the letter. 

It can’t get any more authentic as this wax seal. Yet here he is standing and waiting.

“Take him away for  non-compliance with authority!” were the words that made the two Seraphs pin him to the floor. Will landed on the checked floor with his breath knocked out from his lungs. Winston growled and barked at them, ready to attack if his master ask ed. 

“Unhand me! You are making a big mistake!” Will choked out, doing the best as he could to get away from the hands that held him down. 

“S top resisting!” was the only warning he got before more pressure was placed on his back and the sound of zaps could be hea rd. 

“I’ m not! Hey! Hey! Hey! Stop touching my mask! I need it to breathe. Stop it! “He kept a hand that was not restrained on his mask when they tried to pull it off. Will kept trashing to keep his face away from the praying hand s. 

T hrough the struggles, he can hear gasps and some commuters asking if they should get involved. None of them came forward to help, not sure if they will get dragged into the situation for getting nosy. Winston charged at one of the guards and sank his teeth into the arm .

“F uck, he bit me! Get this rabid mongrel off m e!”

W ill wanted to scream at his dog to run when one of them raised the electric pronged baton up to beat hi m. 

“Stop! Release him at once! Do it right now!” Came the sharp shout of another fast approaching steps before more hands came to pull the guards on him off.

Will was pulled up to his feet and he is panting from the exertion of trying to fight off the guards. He looks around bewildered on what is happening to notice another station master and more Seraphs joining the group. 

‘Ah great, I’m officially screwed to high heavens.’ he cursed inwardly ready to fight this time as he picked up his cane.

“You. You. You. Out! Apologise to this poor gentleman for assaulting him for no reason and get out! Now! I don’t want to see your faces!” The head station master’s face is red with anger with wild gesturing. 

He turned and looked at Will with an as apologetic smile as he could fake, frankly Will could not care. “I do apologise Monsieur  Krähe for all the trouble that these men are giving you. Come this way and I will lead you straight to your transport.”

“Winston,” Will called and checked his beloved companion for injuries and packed the head with the beak of the mask that thankfully stayed on.

The silence was deafening as they approached the glass tube. Will was shaken up by the assault and thankful that at least he was not shot on the spot. His arms ache from fighting them off and he is pretty sure there will be bruises marking his bodies from the rough handling.

“ _ Monsieur Krähe _ ? ”

W ill look at the man in acknowledgement as he steps into the glass elevat or.

“I really do hope this incident will not be reported to the  Mournphale family or even the Church Scribes . We don’t want the Church coming down on us for our rude behaviour and ques tioning the authenticity of the papers issued by them especially to you, sir.” The man rubs his hands nervously.

Will’s hand tightens a fraction on the head of the cane. It was a bald-faced lie that was said to him. The Church does not care much about what happens to people as long as they get their mandatory contributions from the people. 

“Sure .” Will dryly replied to the man wanting to be left alone and the doors shut as the gears gr ind to send him up.

****

Sunday. Will hates Sundays for it is the day of weekly confessions to The Church of all the so-called ‘sins’ you have committed and progresses you have made for the week. It was more of a way for people of The Church above to keep check of them and make sure none of them is misbehaving. To Will, these sessions felt more like a day for you to rat out others just to get ahead of them. Will is just glad he managed to finish it quickly and be off to shop for more supplies he is low on.

Will sneeze, the sky looking a lot smokier and the air felt thick with the familiar smell of burnings. He could not tell if it was the smell of the toxic fumes from burning all the rubbish or was it from the metal kilns. All the smells have mingled up into one ball of smells that he has grown up with. His eyes drip with tears as the surrounding air sting his pupils and he wants to do nothing but rub them if his hands are not occupied.

The bags in his arm weigh heavy as he slowly strolls through the food alleys looking around to see if he can get extra sausages links for rainy days. Food is expensive and the best food is even harder to get hold of especially in  _ Limbus  _ unless you know where to look for them and Will knew just a place to do so. The current issue is to find a way to spot the next spot where the shop will be popping up. 

Will kept moving as his eyes scan the walls for the marking to point him to the shop. His hands tighten on his bag when he spots some Seraphs walking towards him. The tides of unwashed masses parted at a glimmering column of Seraphs in crisp white uniforms that contrast the grimy streets strutting through. Their faces smug with batons in hands waiting to use it on an unfortunate person who even did the offence of breathing the same air as them if they will amuse them. Will steps off the road to plaster himself to the wall, hoping they will not pick any trouble with him just for being on the same street as them. He could not afford to lose this bag of food and he hugs it closer to his chest, keeping his eyes down not to attract attention. They did not even give him a second glance but instead, they diverted their attention to the poor baker who made the mistake of walking out with a tray full of bread and brushing dirt on the uniform of the leader of the group. The Seraphs are on his like a pack of sharks, grabbing the tray and throwing the fresh loaves to the muddy floor. He was shoved against the wall and the baton was raised. 

Will felt his stomach turn as he waited for the stick to fall as he will have to witness another power display. He could feel the same hopelessness emitting from the other residents who try to pretend that it did not bother them too as they go about their day. But the punishment never came and Will could feel his body release the breath he did not know he was holding just glad he would be witnessing more bloodshed for the fun of it.

“Be glad that I’m in a good mood today.” The grinding voice of the leader makes Will’s skin feel like sandpaper has rubbed against him. 

They started to laugh like a bunch of hyenas that just had their fun and left the shaking man to pick up the destroyed bread. 

“Something big is happening soon at the Church. I can’t wait.” was the spot of conversation Will managed to pick up as he moved forward to help the baker.

‘Something big?’ Will wonders but decided to brush it off. ‘Nothing good can come from this.’

“Thank you, William. I don’t think I can sell this bread now that they are muddy.” The old baker sighs in defeat. “Business is barely keeping afloat with all the tax the Church is imposing and I have a family to feed.”

“Times are hard indeed.” Will agreed with him as he placed back the salvageable loaves of bread back on to the tray.

“At least I can be thankful that I wasn’t beaten to a pulp.” The baker just sighs in defeat, shaking his head and going back into his shop leaving Will behind.

**** 

“Winston. Here boy. I brought you the sausages you like!” the keys in Will’s hand jingles as he pushes the door into his home. The light machinery whirling to life to light his home as he steps right in. 

Will put down his backpack and toed off his shoes. His body aching from the day of being at his shop breaking down an entire mechanical icebox that he managed to hurl back with much effort. His fingers felt like they were about to break apart from the heavy loads. 

“Winston?” Will tries calling again, finding it much unusual to not hear a response.

The house is too quiet. He could not hear Winston panting or even the sound of paws padding on the floor. Having a quiet house especially with a dog is never a good sign. Usually, it means his companion is up to no good as he learned the last time when Winston went through his clothes and chewed his favourite sweater.

“Wins…” his words trailed off as his feet crunch on an envelope lying on the floor.

“Huh?” 

Will toed at the item, giving the suspicious black envelope a few pokes just to check if it is a trap and something that might blow up or worse, biting his toes off. 

‘That is silly.’ Will chuckles to himself as he picks up the harmless envelope, groaning as he got back up. His back is killing him for even doing something as simple as bending over.

“Winston!” He tries again as he walks deeper into his home to find his dog trotting up to him with his tail wagging.

“Oh come on Winston. Where were you when I called? Did you get distracted by my clothes again?” Will chuckles and pats the head of his dog who happily barks. “Well, it better not be my coat that is chewed up this time. Those are expensive to be tailored.”

He turned the envelope over, looking for the sender's address and even his own address but all he saw is a neatly sealed envelope with a wax seal on it looking very official. A letter hand-delivered to him with no way of tracing the sender. He ran his hand over the crimson seal and traced the smooth wax.

‘A curious little letter you are.’ he thought.

Cracking the wax disc and unfolding the letter, one name came barging to the forefront of Will’s mind as he slumped into his chair staring at the coded message knowing only one person will end it to him.

Abigail.

**Author's Note:**

> Chapter 2 coming soon after beta!!!
> 
> Wish me luck!!


End file.
